


unconventional enchantments

by ishiyams



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Dark Magic, Demons, Dissociation, Familiars, M/M, Magical Tattoos, Multi, Panic Attacks, Polyamory, Stalking, Thriller, Tsukki has a stalker, but im still into it, somehow this is getting scarier than i envisioned
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-08
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2020-06-24 18:50:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19729669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ishiyams/pseuds/ishiyams
Summary: All Tsukishima Kei wants to do is finish his degree, get control of his magic, and become independent as soon as possible. After he meets a bright boy with strange eyes, and mysterious things start to happen, will his goals be reached? Or will he succumb to the darkness that surrounds him?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [craving attachment desire](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12581452) by [serendipitousDescent](https://archiveofourown.org/users/serendipitousDescent/pseuds/serendipitousDescent). 



> thanks for clicking in even though the summary was a tad over dramatic!!  
> ur the real MVP. ;^)

Tsukishima Kei is having a no good very bad day, and it wasn’t even 8 o’clock in the morning.

Tsukishima Kei also hates trains.

For a magically advanced society such as this one, why was it that humanity still traveled stuffed into metal tubes like sardines? 

Kei sighs as he is once again jostled against the press of bodies that rush hour had brought pouring onto the train. If he had just woken up earlier he would have been spared from this hot hellish flesh party. If he had woken up earlier, he wouldn’t have other peoples sweat all over his t-shirt sleeves.

_‘You could just wear short sleeves…’_

He craves a shower already, and if he had woken up earlier he could have taken one. Instead he can feel his own hot summer night sweat cooling on his skin. 

If Kei had done a lot of things differently this last 24 hours- no this last _week_ , he would have been a lot happier in this moment.

If he had done what he was supposed to do a week prior, it would have meant that he hadn’t stayed up into the early morning working on a paper that was due _today_ for a professor that wouldn’t hesitate to fail him. He would have had time to eat breakfast and take his time gathering his things instead of a mad dash out the door that was his completely enjoyable and _not at all_ upsetting morning. 

The incessant buzz under his skin would be the wonderful caffeine of a too-sweet latte, his one vice. Instead, the buzz was his magic responding to his current state of irritation, and a sharp watchful intuition that was not his own.

If he was on the earlier, emptier, train, he would also not be irritated by any one person on said train. Specifically the man right in front of him, who is pressing right into his side and who couldn’t seem to stop moving.

Kei feels his irritation rising as the guy stands there tapping his foot and drumming on his thigh, his tan elbow hitting Kei in the side with every down beat. 

Kei can hear another one of the guys ridiculously drum beaty songs start through his own soft jazz. A pit of dread settles in his already woozy stomach as the guy’s vigorous head movements take up an even more erratic rhythm. 

_‘Just because you have biceps for days does not mean the world will cater to them_!’ 

The blond angrily envisions himself stabbing the man in the side with his own elbow, maybe even a sharp pencil. He’s sure he has a sufficient one in his bag somewhere. 

He lets a scowl turn down the corners of his mouth, glaring with all his might at the side of the others head.

Right as Kei is in the middle of thinking up increasingly insulting names for this guys stupid hair, the head turns and gold meets _bright gold_. Suddenly he’s faced with the brightest eyes he ever remembers seeing in his 22 years of life. 

_They’re even brighter than Shouyou’s_ , he finds himself thinking as the eyes blink owlishly at him. 

‘ _Those are so bright, they’ll make_ you _disappear.’_

He doesn’t feel it as his scrunched up face softens at the continuous eye contact. The sharp edges of his glare evening out and his scowl becoming less pronounced. Some of his irritation seeps away as it gives way to cautious intrigue. 

Kei watches as the guy turns his deliciously toned body to face him fully, his arms flexing as he adjusts his grip on the hand hold he’s using to stay upright. He tilts his head to the side, giving Kei a once over and letting a soft grin tilt his mouth.

Suddenly the gold eyes lose a little bit of their brightness, darkening slightly as a hint of rosey pink seeps into his irises from the corners. 

_‘What the fuck is that_?’

Kei feels his head tilt to the side, confusion completely clouding over the remnants of irritation. How does that even work? A spell? Some kind of magical edible? An experiment?

Right as the guy sways forward towards Kei, some orange curling into the sides of his eyes above the pink, Kei’s phone starts ringing in his pocket. He blinks as the man deflates, closing his mouth from where he seemed to be about to say something. Kei looks down and away, fishing his phone out and feeling a sudden loss for something he doesn’t know with those eyes no longer locked with his own. 

Yamaguchi is calling, he must be late for class. Great.

He quickly hits the ignore button, deciding that he’ll buy him an apology coffee later. 

Looking back up to the strange man, he’s surprised to see dark purple has replaced the softer, warm tones around the golden irises, raising so many questions in Kei’s mind. Before he can even think to voice his questions out loud, the doors to the train woosh open, a pleasant but mechanical voice announcing the stop closest to the class he’s late for. 

With a final glance in the strangers direction, Kei continues his mad dash to school, his phone starting up its vibrations once again. 

At least now his morning bitterness is forgotten, covered up by a gold so bright that Kei can feel the warmth continue on with him.

* * *

The good feeling from the morning does not last very long.

By the time Kei arrives in his last class of the day he is so high strung with tension he is prepared to snap at the smallest pressure. Despite his warm encounter on the moving sardine can, his day was absolute garbage, and he was so ready for it to be over.

The class he had needed to write the paper for was hell, the teacher deciding to single him out to read his half-assed, thrown together, overtired work to the whole class and then have a discussion about it. 

At lunch time, Yamaguchi was hovering over him and worrying over the bags under Kei’s eyes, asking multiple times if he needed more to drink. 

Cries of “You should really take better care of yourself Tsukki!” and “You need to hydrate!” was met over and over with “shut up Tadashi” and for once was not heeded, even with the irritation in his eyes and tone getting more apparent. 

He appreciated the worry, but he just couldn’t handle it right now. Yamaguchi had been an overbearing mother hen lately and it was _suffocating_ him. It took every ounce of patience he had to squash the urge to seriously snap at his ~~only~~ _freckled_ friend. 

On top of that, on the way across campus he tripped over some poor botany experiment gone wrong and ended up face first in some gnarly looking tree roots. Dirt was streaked down his t-shirt and his nose and forehead were throbbing in time to his heart beat.

So to say Kei was fed up with his garbage day when he rolled into his last class was a gross understatement. He was a short 90 minute wait away from being able to stuff his face with some much needed strawberry deliciousness, and he was _suffering_.

He was so ready to put this awful day behind him that he almost didn’t notice the intense stare that was directed at the back of his head throughout the length of the lecture _once again_. 

Almost. 

As it stands, Kei can feel someone’s eyes absolutely burning into the back of his skull, making the hairs on his arms stand at attention. He shivers once, casting a quick and cautious glance around the classroom, trying _once again_ to determine where that intense gaze is coming from.

He is unsuccessful, most of the students have their heads down, furiously scribbling notes, and the ones who were not weren’t looking at Kei. 

Notes. He should be taking notes. Fuck.

‘ _Slacker…_ ’

The blond goes back to his own notes, putting the odd feeling of eyes on him to the back of his mind. He keeps his attention trained on the professor for the rest of class, unaware of the intense cat-like gaze that follows him up until the moment he leaves the lecture hall. 

“Kuroo… You’re being weird again” a soft, unassuming voice calls out, somehow following the blond down the hall. 

Unbeknownst to Kei, it was followed by a deep chuckle and a sly smirk.

* * *

Kei slumps sideways into the booth across from Yamaguchi, making his timid friend jump and look up from his phone. His regular coffee order accompanied by a small slice of strawberry shortcake is already waiting for him on the table.

“I love you Tadashi, how do I deserve such an angel,” he states, lovingly caressing the cake with his dessert fork. 

“I thought you would need it, after all the texts and your mental state at lunch time,” his friend chuckles, cheeks dusting pink as he mock scowls at Kei, “Are you feeling any better?”

Kei’s chest rises and collapses again as he heaves a large drawn out sigh. He takes a long sip of his drink, savoring the burn of the hot latte on the top of his mouth. As he puts the cup back down he turns to Yamaguchi with what could almost be a pout, except for the fact that Kei doesn’t _pout_.

“I’m quitting school, I’ve decided. I’m running away into the mountains, never to be heard from again,” he complains, curling further over the table. He continues his slow downward motion until his cheek is on the table top, his long legs strewn out under Yamaguchi's side of the bench. He moves his arm to cradle the plate of cake like a baby, barely raising his hand as he finally begins to consume his life blood.

“Come on Tsukki! Your day couldn’t have been that bad. Remember the time we were finally learning transformations, and Tobio accidentally turned you into an emu! I don’t think it could have been worse than that,” Yamaguchi tried to comfort him, his voice chipper as bright as always, his eyes full of amusement.

“I’m pretty sure that wasn’t an accident at all, but thank you ever so much for reminding me of the wonderful time I spent as a giant stupid chicken,” Kei deadpanned around one of the strawberries he had shoveled into his mouth like a dying man, “I absolutely love to think of the King on days such as these, it brings me endless joy.”

The still bitter thoughts of his old teammate were interrupted by a soft throat clearing, forcing him to raise his head from the table. One of the cafe employees was standing there, holding a to go cup of what could only be one of Yamaguchi's ridiculously customized franken-drinks. He had on the black t-shirt with the too happy looking logo of a tiny plant that this cafe was known for, his outfit contrasting nicely with the clean white decor of the cafe itself. 

He meets a beautiful dark green gaze, raising one meticulously groomed eyebrow at the depth of emotion contrasting the mans otherwise unreadable expression. Kei thinks he catches a quick flicker of recognition, but he’s positive they’ve never met before. He would have remembered these eyes, framed by thick dark lashes as they were. 

The employee recovered first, his eyes fluttering closed for a second before opening again as he turns to Kei’s companion. 

Something brushes against Kei’s wrist, sending a sudden chill down his spine.

As the barista places Yamaguchi's caffeinated _monstrosity_ in front of him, Kei turns to the side of the booth that bordered a window. Between the table and the glass there sits a small ledge that runs the length of the cafe and contains a multitude of potted plants. 

Looking down Kei finds a small fern was curling out of the side of one of the pots, seemingly reaching out towards his hand that was resting on the table. 

‘ _Uh… hello?_ ’

As he looked at it, the plant seemed to shudder and reach closer by small slow increments, looking like it was trying to curl around his pinkie finger.

Kei locks his muscles up, staying as still as he’s able to as the leaves reach up the side of his palm, arching over the base of his finger and curling up to his first knuckle.

Yamaguchi's voice brought him out of his fascinated state, his friend’s tone sounding puzzled. Kei looked back up and found the brown haired boy looking up at the barista, not back at him. He too turned his gaze to the standing man, blinking at the soft pink blush that colored his pale cheeks. 

The barista’s gaze was also turned down towards the plant, seemingly at a loss for words yet uncondemned by his facial expression. 

After a few seconds spent blinking at the plant, he muttered a hurried yet soft “enjoy” and turned quickly on his heel. He rushed to make his way back behind the counter and started in on the drink orders that were already piling up in his absence.

Yamaguchi turned back to him, his head cocked to the side and his expression quizzical.

“That was odd... do you know him?” Yamaguchi asked, his fingers closing around his cup and lacing together.

“No clue, people are acting really strange today,” Kei answered, starting in on his cake once more, “Think it’s the full moon?”

“No Tsukki, I’m pretty sure that’s just you,” Yamaguchi teased, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“Shut up Yamaguchi,” Kei retorted, his eyes once again finding the fern that was still stretched across the table, though now it was unmoving.

Thinking of the moon and his own magic made Kei remember this morning in a flash of bright gold. His irritation once again evaporated, leaving only warmth and contentment. 

He reached out with his other hand and gently skimmed the top of the closest leaf with the pad of his finger, curious yet calm.

A gasp from behind the bar made him jump. 

It was followed by Yamaguchi’s startled yelp as the crash of a ceramic dish hitting the floor rang out. Whipping around he saw the barista just looking away from their direction, quickly maneuvering around what was presumably a shattered cup on the floor in front of him. His soft tenor voice was apologizing profusely to his coworker, who was snickering and not helping clean up whatsoever. 

Both him and Tadashi share a smirk, the latter letting out a small giggle.

“So Tsukki, about that art show tomorrow downtown? I told you about it last week, do you remember?” Yamaguchi asks as he fully turns back to him, his shoulders up by his ears. The brown haired boy still got nervous asking for things, even after years of being by Kei’s side.

“Sorry Tadashi. I don’t have classes tomorrow so I told Ukai I would go in and cover for Daichi and Suga while they’re away,” Kei responded a bit distractedly, his eyes still tracking the barista as he goes about picking up the ceramic. Kei notices what he’s doing and quickly goes back to focusing on his cake, making quick work of it now that he’s paying attention.

“It’s ok Tsukki,” was Yamaguchi’s reply, his timid voice disappointed but still bright. When Kei looks up into his eyes, they were clearly smiling, but beside that was a slightly dark emotion. Both of them were quite busy with school and work lately, unable to find time in their schedules to meet up as often as previous years.

“Thanks for the cake,” Kei told his friend, reaching out and bumping his knuckles into Yamaguchi’s arm, letting the corner of his mouth tilt up for a quick moment. He knows he’s not the most sociable person, preferring to poke fun rather than forming actual meaningful connections with others, but Tadashi has stayed with him for years. The dark emotion was chased out of his friends gaze with his attempt, and both men began gathering their belongings.

The dark haired employee with the pretty eyes is just finishing his cleaning up of the accident as Kei and Yamaguchi move towards the front door. As they reach the entrance, Kei throws a last glance over his shoulder, his gaze briefly meeting the baristas from over the counter. He looks away only as Yamaguchi's palm comes to rest on the small of his back, gently ushering him out of the cozy cafe and into the summer sun.

He couldn’t help but wonder if coincidence would let him come back when that barista was once again on shift.

* * *

Kei almost wants to cry when he finally stumbles through the front door of his apartment lobby after his long day. He’s been fantasizing about a nice long relaxing bath since he woke up. He makes his way towards the stairs, only stopping quickly to exchange pleasantries with his neighbor as he checks his mail box. 

Mail in hand, he books it up to his apartment, taking the stairs two at a time until he reaches the fourth floor. He’s chanting a mantra of _bath bath bath_ in his mind as he finally makes it through his front door. 

Once through the threshold with the lock clicking into place behind him, he throws the mail onto his kitchen counter with little care and shucks off his clothing haphazardly as he makes his way down the short hallway to the bathroom. 

‘ _Ah… finally… freedom! It’s always so stuffy in there with your synthetic fabrics and human odor_ ,’ a slightly accented voice rings out as a giant black raven peels himself out of Kei’s now naked right shoulder, ‘ _I just don’t understand why you can’t just wear t-shirts! Not only would it make it so much easier for my everyday life, but it would also make sure everyone knows how powerful you really are._ ’

Kei sighs as he continues on to the bathroom, ignoring the bird that settles onto the back of his sofa. They’ve had this same disagreement too many times in the past week. 

“Shut up, you feathery asshole. Whose the one who insists on being with me every second of the day?” Kei almost gets the bathroom door closed before the raven swoops in under his arm. _Almost_.

‘ _I’m your familiar, four-eyes! Of course I have to be close to you! What if there's an emergency! Kei if you die, I die!_ ’ the raven settles himself onto the counter as Kei goes about running himself a bath. The bird starts pushing his head under his wing to groom himself, his voice coming out muffled as he continues, ‘ _I mean seriously, Kei. Ukai being a civilian correspondence for those detectives the other day should have clued you in on how dangerous it could be for a mage without a true coven! I’m all the protection you have! Where is your sense of urgency? Look at me, all ruffled, it’s going to take hours to settle all these little feathers down! You humans and your fragile constitutions!_ ’

“Stop panicking, if you start shedding all over my bathroom floor again I’ll stuff a pillow with you,” Kei threatens as he pulls herbs and salts out of the medicine cabinet, throwing them into the bathwater. 

‘ _I’m just saying, a little caution wouldn’t hurt. You’re working yourself into the dirt! If you’re tired when someone tries to kidnap you, it's on me to protect you. How am I supposed to do that when I have to bust out of your shirt, or worse, I'm not even with you!_ ’ Kei listens to this as he lowers himself into the charmed water, letting out a sigh as it almost immediately soothes the tension in his body.

“Why would anyone waste their time trying to kidnap a university student?” Kei closes his eyes and leans into the wall, resisting the urge to dunk his head underwater and be done with this conversation.

‘ _Kei! Tsukishima Kei! You big blond bean! You’re powerful! Everyone wants you! There is darkness and danger lurking on the horizon! If something happens to you I’ll die, Yamaguchi will be overcome with grief and will cry all the time, not to mention Akiteru! Think of mother! She’ll never forgive me!_ ’ the bird was working himself up now, extending his wings out to the sides and hopping up and down on the counter.

“Damn it Corvo, calm the hell down! No one is bursting through the window at this very moment, we can at least enjoy a bath before we plan my demise!” Kei sits back up, the ravens rising panic sharp in the back of his mind. He reaches out and flicks his fingers at the bird, a short gust of wind flying out and knocking the bird into the sink. 

‘ _You heathen! I am a noble familiar! Capable of- fuck- Kei what the hell- I’m capable of acts you can’t even imagine!_ ’ the bird was definitely shouting as he flailed, the curved sink and overhanging faucet making it so he couldn’t right himself, ‘ _You’re a straight up bastard! Just wait until I get out of here! You’re going to die! I'll tell everyone your embarrassing secrets!_ ’

“Oh sure, too bad no one else can hear you. Why don’t you just chill out there for a while,” Kei snickered to himself as he relaxed once again into the warm water, eyes slipping closed. After a few moments of struggling the raven huffed, shuffling around so he could get as comfortable as he was able in the small space. He was still grumbling under his breath, but at least the sting of panic was replaced by the slight buzz of irritation. 

Finally, after his terrible day, some much needed peace of quiet.

* * *

Kei pads into his kitchen, wrapped in a fluffy towel. He sets about making himself a quick dinner, snapping his fingers at his kettle. One of the tattoos on his collarbone flares, a sharp black rune glowing quickly before returning to normal. Some of the shading leaves the tattoo as the light fades, just enough to tell if you knew what to look for. 

The water in the kettle starts boiling almost immediately.

‘ _Show off._ ’ Corvo looks away just in time for Kei to whip around and glare at him, though the effect is ruined a bit by the squint the blond has without his glasses.

Kei doesn’t respond to him otherwise, returning to his task. His tattoos catch the light as he works. They seem to swirl around his arms and chest, smokey and ethereal, disappearing down his hips where the towel is wrapped around his waist. 

He continues to ignore the raven, only sliding a bowl of salad towards him as he sits down at his coffee table. They both eat their meal in silence, Corvo’s irritation still fresh in Kei’s head.

Both manage to keep their silence until Kei is washing dishes, arms covered in bubbles.

‘ _Kei… I don’t mean to make you angry… It’s my job to protect you, to be a companion and your one true ally…’_ The bird lands softly on Kei’s shoulder, rubbing the bottom of his beak over Kei’s hair, ‘ _I can feel your fierce desire for independence, but I’m only ever on your side.’_

Kei lets out what feels like the days millionth sigh, turning his cheek towards the raven and letting it smooth over the birds feathers. 

“I know…” He pulls back and smirks at his familiar, “You’re just so damn annoying about it, you over dramatic crow.”

‘ _Kei! I’m not a garbage eating crow! We were having a bonding moment! You big buffoon! You ruin everything! Im regal and sophisticated!_ ’ The raven huffs and flies off towards the living room, his amused exasperation making Kei smile softly. 

Kei is drying his hands as he hears the vibrations of his phone from his bag. He quickly makes his way to where he dropped it, and catches the call on the last ring.

“Hello?”

His only response is a ragged breathing. The sound of traffic in the background his only indication the call hadn’t dropped.

“Hello..?”

_“...”_

The call cut off, the line going silent against Kei’s ear. 

‘ _Kei, what the hell was that?_ ’

“I’m not sure…” Kei makes his way to the couch, sitting down while still engaged with his phone. 

He pulls up his called list only to see the call came from an unknown number. With further inspection, he realizes that he has 23 missed calls, all from the same number. The timestamps show that they had been coming the entire time he was in the bath. He checks his voicemail only to see that the inbox was empty. Who calls that much for no reason?

‘ _Well this is highly suspicious and weirdly in line with everything we have been arguing about,_ ’ Corvo muses, blinking at him from the coffee table. 

“Don’t start,” Kei sneers at the bird, throwing his phone to the other side of the couch, “It was probably just a prank call. Full moon and all that.”

He waves it away, laying down on the couch and pulling one of the many scattered books towards him. 

He does not succeed in waving away the cold apprehension taking root in his stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come find me on twitter under the same name and ask me about bokutos eyes  
> <(￣︶￣)>


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im gonna add slow burn to the tags because of my slow updates

Kei already knows he’s about to get hit with a storm before Nishinoya’s bright and tightly controlled magic is lighting up the edges of his awareness.

The reason? No divination magic, Kei didn’t have any luck studying the field of foresight.

He’s alerted by the thundering of tiny feet as the energetic man careens around the corner of the hallway closest to Kei.

“Tsukishima! We’re going to the bar after work, and you’re joining us. We’re going to get day drunk, and we’re going to _bond_ ,” Nishinoya draws out the last word of his sentence as he comes over to lean on Kei’s shoulder, a shiteating grin spread over his tiny face.

Kei takes a moment to close his eyes and breathe before turning to his supervisor and putting on the most disgusted expression in his repertoire. He sneers right into Nishinoya’s face, squinting at him for good measure.

“I’d rather spell a never ending staircase, and then throw myself down it.”

“Oh you sourpuss, it's not that bad! We’re all gonna go sit outside and drink beer! Beer Tsukishima!” he leans back out of Kei’s personal space, just so he can wave his arms around in his out of control manner.

“When have I ever been tempted by the watered down yeast you favor? I’m not Shouyou,” Kei responds with a sigh, turning back to the books he's working with. He just has a few more to look over and he can be released from this unairconditioned hell hole.

“Tsukishimaaaaa! You never come out with us! You’ve known the freak duo since high school, but the rest of us need to get to know what makes you tick!” Nishinoya is definitely whining now, draping himself over Kei’s desk and disturbing the talismans and books he has piled on it.

 _‘Sarcasm, caffeine, and mean thoughts…_ ’ Corvo supplies silently, followed by a snicker and a rustle of Kei’s t-shirt.

Kei scowls at both of these statements, closing the last of the books with a harsh snap. He abruptly stands, making Nishinoya jump up from where he’s hanging off the corner of the desk. They face each other silently, Nishinoya still grinning and hopping back and forth on the balls of his feet.

Kei pretends to consider this for a few moments, looking down his nose at the other silently.

“No,” Kei says with a self satisfied smirk, grabbing his bag and quickly dodging past the shorter man in one smooth motion.

Nishinoya’s disappointed whine follows him as he walks down the hall, filling him with a warm feeling akin to happiness.

_‘You’re a real bastard.’_

“So you keep telling me.”

* * *

Once outside on the sidewalk, Kei decides that going back to his hot apartment would be counterproductive to combating the heat. He also can’t stay out on the street for too long, since he’s still in the vicinity of his part time job and as such in the vicinity of his coworkers.

‘ _Ah yes, wouldn’t want to see people who actually want to get to know you…_ ’

“Stuff it, bird brain,” is muttered under his breath as he lets his feet guide him down a familiar path.

He decides to make his way through the hot and humid air to his favorite cafe, intent on starting a new book. He’s been carrying it around for a while in the hopes of finding a few spare minutes, but his schedule had been so demanding as of late.

The stifling heat crawls down his covered arms as he walks, and he can already feel the sweat pooling in the small of his back. Absolutely disgusting.

‘ _Shut up, beanpole. You're not the one that has to be stuck in here_ ,’ Corvo starts to pant for dramatic effect, swirling around his upper arm and kicking at Kei’s t-shirt. He’s sure that gets a few looks from a curious passersby or two. He just speeds up in response.

“You shut up, and stop moving. I gave you the option to fuck right off,” Kei hisses, a bit sharper then he means to. The heat is making him grumpy, and though it's not a huge change from his usual demeanor, Corvo settles almost instantly. The bird is pointedly silent and still for the rest of the walk, his irritation licking up the back of Kei’s neck.

Kei only feels slightly guilty for snapping at the bird.

Slightly.

Kei can breathe easy almost immediately upon entering the cafe, the magic of the small space soothing his spirit as little else can. The establishment is cozy, dark and natural, the plants around the walls and counters giving it the feel of a lush forest. There aren’t a lot of customers today, just a few other students like himself and a couple in the corner pressed close together.

As he makes his way to the counter, he reaches up to gently run his fingers over his shoulder where he knows Corvo is curled up. The bird flutters a bit, knowing this is all the apology he’s going to get and graciously accepting it, the last threads of irritation fading away.

As Kei steps up to the cashier, he looks past her to give the man behind her a once over.

The same barista as last time has his hip pressed to the counter in front of the coffee machine, his arms crossed over his chest as he waits for an order. He is looking decidedly unfrazzled, unlike the last time Kei saw him. His face is turned toward a taller male who is almost on top of the counter he's leaning so far over it.

Kei almost turns tail and runs right back out the door when he glances to the side and comes face to face once again with bright gold.

Its only due to Kei’s natural poker face and astounding ability to control himself that he does not choke out his coffee order. The cashier still gives him a confused smile as he stutters slightly.

Damn.

He finishes paying, resolutely not looking at the man who has straightened up from his position and is now staring at Kei in shock.

_(“K-Kaashi! That's him! The guy from the train!”_

_“Kou, as usual you are not the best at whispering.”)_

‘ _You were curious about his eyes,_ ’ Corvo supplies, shimmying his way to Kei’s neck to try and peek out of his shirt, ‘ _You should talk to him._ ’

“Stop that!” the blond hisses under his breath, covering his shiver by throwing himself into his favorite booth along the window.

 _‘I just want to see him! With my own eyes!_ ’ Kei huffs an irritated breath as he feels Corvo shuffle up around his neck even more, shoving his other tattoos out of the way as he peeks out the top of the back of the blondes shirt. He closes his eyes as he takes a deep inhale, letting the ravens sight fill his mind even as his body is turned away.

The tall man is chatting with the barista excitedly, waving his arms about as he leans over the counter. He gestures towards Kei once, throwing a glance toward where he sits. Kei sucks in a breath as he sees the man's eyes.

Today they’re a light red, with swirling yellow around the rims.

Kei blinks his own eyes open, shaking his head a bit to clear the remements of the other creature’s vision. He turns to unpack his book, taking a few centering inhales as he does so.

 _‘That's so mysterious Kei… it’s like fate,’_ Corvo is still watching the man as he raves about.

_(“I’m gonna go talk to him! Keiji, lend me his drink, I’ll bring it!”_

_“Koutarou, once again you don’t work here, and I can’t_ lend _you a drink, especially not a customers.”_

_“For these two seconds I do! Come on ‘Kaashi! Don't you want to know him!”)_

A raspy throat clearing, followed with a slight clatter breaks Kei’s concentration, pulling his gaze away from the sentence he was reading and back to bright gold. As he watches, light blue and soft pink twirl together in a smoky dance from the bottom of the man’s eyes, creeping up closer to his pupil.

“Your drink sir,” says the man in an exaggerated accent, even going so far as to bend at the waist, though his charade is ruined by the boyish grin upon his lips. In the background Kei sees the shorter barista bring a palm to his forehead as his shoulders rise in a sigh. Kei echoes it, though much softer as he places his book on the table, still open to his page.

“Thanks,” he says without inflection, lowering his gaze to the cup, lest he be caught in the man’s awe-inspiring gaze onces again. Seriously what has this guy done to him?

“So, hey hey hey! I haven’t ever seen you before, and now suddenly I’m seeing you everywhere!” the man continues, before scooting into the booth across from him, prompting Kei to pull his legs back in a hurry, “Are you new around here? Do you go to the University nearby? I do! If you do too, that means we’re in the same school, isn’t that weird? How come I’ve never seen you around before? I’m Bokuto by the way, Bokuto Koutarou, and I’m finishing up my nursing degree! You don’t look like a nurse though, so that explains why we don’t know each other. Do you come here often?”

Kei’s eyes grow wider and wider as the man talks, he was like a steam roller. He decides then and there that this man and Shouyou can never meet. How are these people so bright? And why are they drawn to Kei who is just not?

“Uh… Yes?” he wasn’t sure what he was answering, but Kei decided it was in his best interest to let the man ramble.

And ramble he did. This man could talk for hours without much prompting from Kei, and yet he seemed to talk about nothing at all. By the time Bokuto started losing steam, Kei knew all about his classes, his plans for the future, his scholarship and its parameters, even down to a small cat he saw on the way to work the other day.

Kei wasn’t exactly paying much attention to the stories, not really actively engaging the other man. Instead, he was watching Bokuto’s eyes change color with every story.

Throughout their time together, they had stayed mostly gold, yellow and pink hinting at their presence in just the corners. As he was focused on telling Kei about his job and how he wanted to work there for a few years after graduating before moving on to a big hospital on the other side of the city, there was a dark forest green that rose up from the bottom of his irises. When he was going on about his roommates, a light red covered almost all the gold, coming from the same place as the green.

 _Is it mood based?_ Kei continued to ponder these thoughts as Bokuto continued his stories. As Bokuto talked, there was a twinge at the edge of his magical awareness. When Bokuto was explaining something and looking elsewhere, Kei quickly glanced down at the table. He wasn’t really surprised to see another fern reaching towards his hand where it was curled over his cup.

With an exasperated huff at the offending plant, he unfurled his fingers. He put his hand down, palm facing up, and watched as the soft leaves spread themselves over his skin.

 _‘Is this going to happen every time we’re here?_ ’ Kei resisted the urge to shrug before looking back up to the bright man in front of him.

Bokuto had just started to tell Kei a bit about his family, how far away they were and how they were many in number, and his eyes reacted with deep purple sliding down like blinds, completely covering the bright gold.

“They thought Fukurodani would be the best place for me to learn magic, since my moods have always been pretty extreme. I came to Tokyo right after middle school, and only see them once every year or so,” he explained, the purple dulling the shine of his eyes as he looked down. He glanced back up at Kei through his lashes, looking forlorn and dejected. Kei still wasn’t sure why, but he didn’t want Bokuto to be sad. In his short time knowing the other it seemed to be so natural to see him shining bright. This sad version of himself felt wrong, even to Kei.

“I get it,” Kei started, looking down and focusing on running his fingertips across the fern, “My parents moved to America for work. My brother is here in Tokyo but we aren’t exactly…. close anymore.”

Bokuto had raised his head as Kei explained about his own family, his openness a surprise even to himself. For some reason the shorter man made the blond feel comfortable and safe, making him open up in a way that took Yamaguchi the better part of his childhood. Maybe it was just how open the man himself was, his expressions left unguarded and loose.

Finally flecks of gold were seen peeking through the dark purple that had taken up residence in the others eyes. It was mesmerizing to watch, like the sun coming out of the dark clouds after a storm. It was accompanied by a slow smile that bloomed across Bokuto's face, leaving Kei breathless in its wake.

Kei didn’t know what he did to be regarded with such a look, but he definitely knows he desperately wanted to covet it. He wanted to see that same sequence everyday like the sunrise.

The intensity of his desire floored him, this was the first time he’s ever spoken to Bokuto. Only the second time he’s ever been in his presence. If he were to be honest with himself, his desire to be close to Bokuto scared him a bit, and he sensed the ever close panic start to make his skin crawl.

Luckily he was saved by a set of soft footsteps approaching the table. Both men looked up to see the pale barista walking towards them, wearing street clothes and carrying a potted plant. Bokuto immediately hopped up, reaching out to take the pot from the smaller mans hold.

“Bringing home another one, Keiji? Do we even have enough room in the apartment?” he asked, hiking the pot up on one hip.

“If we don’t, we’ll commandeer the cat’s room. From what I hear, he could use a few nights on the balcony,” the barista replied with a slight head tilt. He turned towards Kei, blinking green eyes at him as he adjusted his coat. His green eyes lower to the table and take in the fern that is now curling itself around all of Kei’s fingers, his expression impassive.

“Oh! This is Akaashi Keiji, my roommate, I was telling you about him!” Bokuto supplied happily, bouncing a little in place, the plant bouncing along with him, “Kaashi’ this is… uh… _oh no._ ”

Bokuto’s head tilted to the side, his expression morphing into one of horror. His eyes started gathering a purple tinge to the tops of them, though not as substantial as the effect from earlier. Coming in from the sides was a yellowish green, the three colors all mixing together in the middle as Kei watched in amusement.

“Tsukishima Kei,” he took pity on the bulkier man, one side of his mouth tilting upward in a satisfied smirk as he too rose to his feet.

He misses the look Akaashi and Bokuto share behind his back as he pushes his things into his bag. When he turns however, he catches the tail end of a strong yellow disappearing out of the corners of Bokuto's eyes, followed by a soft appearance of a light blue and orange mix.

“Well Tsukishima, it was super nice meeting you thanks for talking so long! We better head out, bye!” Just as abruptly as he came, Bokuto was gone, whisking Akaashi away after him. Kei blinked at the door after they had disappeared, completely thrown off balance once again, though for a very different reason.

_‘That man is a hurricane…’_

Kei wholeheartedly agrees.

* * *

It takes 3 days for Kei to remember the mail he’s forgotten on the edge of his kitchen counter.

He remembers it as he's leaving for another full day of classes, thankfully early this time, and with no half-assed assignments.

_‘Thank god… Your panicked frenzy was hell to live through.’_

“Shut up, bird brain,” he mutters, sorting through a few bills before coming to the bottom of the pile.

Kei raises an eyebrow at an unassuming envelope, his name and address printed on a sticker instead of handwritten.

He makes quick work of the seal, pulling out a thick piece of cardstock. He turns it over in his hands, looking at it from all sides.

It’s blank.

“Seriously… what is happening these days...” he mutters to himself, waving the card back and forth, “It can’t be just the moon.”

‘ _Kei… there's magic on that!_ ’ Corvo’s intense string of surprise and suspicion stings at the back of Kei’s neck. His familiar is instantly restless, pulling tightly at the skin of his shoulder as he tries to worm out the top of Kei’s shirt.

Kei cautiously brings the card near his nose, inhaling a quick and deliberate shallow breath, opening his awareness. Immediately the back of his throat is coated in the electric taste of someone else's magic. He arches a brow, lowering the card from his face before turning it over again.

“It’s sharp and dark, like acid. Not someone I’m familiar with…” Kei pushes down a feeling of unease, though judging by Corvo’s worried muttering he feels the same.

‘ _Kei, maybe you should take it to Ukai’s… Koushi is coming back today, maybe he can do something about it…_ ’

“Yeah…” Kei is distracted by overwhelming thoughts of what this could mean as he slides the letter into his bag.

This is getting weird and out of hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank u to my best beta boi banri, who keeps me goin 
> 
> leave a comment and lemme know how u feel


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> u know what gets my goat? the fact that all of these heckin boys have the same damn eye color.
> 
> anyway, ask about tattoos and u shall receive (ง ಸ‿ ಸ)ง

“You sure used these up, huh? What were you doing?”  
  
Kei leans back into Koushi’s grip on his naked shoulder, shivering at the contrasting feeling of the sharp needle in the man’s other hand. He’s in the process of working on another constellation on Kei’s shoulder, weaving it in between two runes. 

“Just some experimenting…” Kei wasn’t a fan of pain per say, but there was something relaxing about letting his magic slowly drain into Koushi’s magic, both of them mixing into the needle as it pushes more ink into his skin. 

‘ _More like household charms… I don’t think tall, dark, and stupid here has gone down to the laundry room in months._ ’ Corvo exclaims as he hops over from where he was sitting by the small window in Koushi’s office, munching away on a few snacks. Koushi always makes sure to have an assortment of treats in the small room for the familiar.

“Hmm? What did he say? Was it important? You wouldn’t lie to your senpai, would you Kei?” Koushi emphasises his words with a painful squeeze of Kei’s bare flesh. The blond pushes back his urge to wince by biting down on the inside of his cheek, knowing that if he moved the constellation Koushi was working on would be disrupted. 

“I would never lie to you, _senpai_ ,” Kei growls, trying to wiggle his shoulder out of Koushi’s death grip while still keeping his other shoulder still, “I may have _forgotten_ , that I also used a quick cleaning laundry charm the other day. Birdbrain here was nice enough to remind me.”

Koushi hums and finally loosens his grip, not saying anything else as he continues inking the tattoo. Kei lets out a soft sigh, rolling his shoulder to ease the sting of pinching fingers. 

The blond silently wishes Koushi would let him get away with grumbling and sulking, but knowing that wasn’t going to fly keeps his mouth shut as the finishing touches are added to the tattoo.

The good thing about getting magical tattoos was that there was little to no healing process that Kei had to go through. His own magic and its inclination for transformation and creation took Koushi’s soft and gentle magic and convinced it to knit his skin back together over top of the new tattoo. The only discomfort he’s going to endure is a few days of an unscratchable itch while his own magic filters out Koushi’s and settles in. If Corvo is feeling agreeable in the coming days, he would help that process speed along. 

Koushi has worked up a soft sheen of sweat by the time he’s done, his skin flushed. Kei eyes him as he stands up and makes his way to the small table by the window, bringing out the makings of two cups of hot chocolate.

“Daichi- _san_ will get mad if you push yourself too hard, _senpai_ ,” He says it like a dry observation as he shrugs his shirt back on, righting his glasses on his nose after he’s done. Corvo hops over the backs of their abandoned chairs and settles himself on Kei’s shoulder as the blond makes his way over to accept the steaming mug being held out to him.

“I just can't understand why you’re never even a little bit tired after our sessions. I'm sweating like I just ran up two flights of stairs! And it was only like, 20 minutes!” Koushi huffs, sitting down again with a flourish as Kei leans against the wall by the window. Corvo leans his head down, hunching over Kei’s arm as he tries to slurp up some of his hot chocolate.

The only answer Kei can give is a shrug, lifting the mug in his hands to the bird on his shoulder and grimacing as he begins slurping up the sugary liquid- the sound right in his ear. The two men finish their hot chocolates like that, the silence comforting and relaxing as the sun begins its descent, bathing the room in a soft orange glow. 

When Koushi’s cheeks are back to their regular color and Kei is swirling the remains of his drink in the bottom of his mug, the blond remembers the other thing that he needed from the older man. 

Placing the empty mug on the table as he goes by and shooing Corvo off his shoulder, he makes his way over to where his bag is resting on the floor by the door. 

“I almost forgot, I got this in the mail and there are some pretty suspicious traces on it. It has Corvo on edge, so I was wondering if you or maybe Ennoshita-san could gain anything from it?” he brings the card back over to Koushi as he speaks, taking a seat with him at the table as Corvo settles on the windowsill. He places the card on the table between them, all three of them leaning forward to inspect it.

“You got this in the mail?” Koushi raises an eyebrow at him, pursing his lips at Kei’s nodded response, “I was wondering what that sour feeling was. It’s been here since you walked in. I just assumed you two were mad at eachother.”

Koushi reaches for the card-

The air between his fingertips and the card ignites, sparks erupting into the air and settling on the table top. Both men and bird let out yelps as they jerk backwards, quickly leaning away from the now smoking piece of paper on the table.

Blinking at it, Kei swallows around the sting of electricity in the back of his throat. He turns back to Koushi to ask what the _fuck_ that was when the words catch on his tongue at the expression on the mans face.

“Kei, whoever sent this…” Koushi runs a shaking palm over his mouth, as though physically wiping the taste from it, “... isn’t _well_. They’re… twisted somehow. I’m sorry that was all I got from that… I’ll keep this here and maybe Chikara or Daichi can take a look at it later...”

He trails off, flexing his fingers and shaking the tension out as Kei watches on. 

The blond is hiding his own reaction to this news surprisingly well , though Corvo is displaying enough of their mixed together panic. The birds feathers are puffed out, and he shifts nervously back and forth as he watches the door and stays bodily in front of the window; the picture perfect protector. 

“Are you okay, Suga-san?” he asks, voice carefully controlled. While he is definitely concerned for the other man, he would rather die than show it. 

Koushi always sees right through him somehow.

 _Drat_.

He laughs and reaches out to lightly pinch Kei’s arm, making the younger man blush as he always does when he's treated like an amusing child.

“I’m fine, _Tsukki_ ,” Koushi meets Kei’s heated glare with his signature grin, leaning forward to ruffle his hair. Kei does _not_ start to pout, but he does put on his most exasperated expression. 

Sometimes he hates these people.

“Anyway! You should get going! It’s almost dark. You better text me when you get home too!” one last hearty slap on the back is all the goodbye he gets as he's practically shoved out the door by the older male, a whispered warning of ‘ _be careful_ ’ following him out.

‘ _Kei take the busier streets home tonight…_ ’ once again back in his place wrapped around his arm, Corvo is agitated and suspicious of every shadow as he watches through Kei’s eyes. His sharp awareness is almost overwhelming as it feeds information into Kei’s mind, information that his human eyes are unable to see.

However it’s very hard to feel overwhelmed while deliberately putting a damper on your emotions.

Kei makes it home on autopilot, the long awaited feelings of panic threatening to rise up to choke him. Luckily his steps are sure and Corvo is for once a comforting presence in the back of his mind. 

He would never admit it out loud, but he’s always grateful that the raven has his back. He’s a fierce and loyal presence in his mind.

‘ _I can read that mind, idiot._ ’ is softly whispered to the back of his awareness as he finally slips through the apartment door.

* * *

The next day, Kei is once again making the long trek across campus to his last class. His heart is sinking as he ponders another class with those damn eyes. 

Why couldn’t he catch a break?

He’s running slightly ahead of his usual schedule, his professor having let his last class go early for some personal reason or another. So this time he has the privilege of skulking to the back of the lecture hall to the coveted back row, only a few other students in the room at this time. 

As he scans the hall from his vantage point, his eyes come to rest on a tall messy looking dark haired boy who seems to be holding court off to one side of the room. He’s surrounded by people, the center of attention and looking like he belongs there. 

As Kei watches on, the man tosses his head back, laughing rambunctiously at something one of the other students said to him. He reaches out, clapping the other guy on the shoulder and leaning over to elbow a girl as she giggled away. 

Kei feels the beginnings of a grimace start to creep onto his face, he doesn’t think he could ever be that effortlessly sociable. Not that he would ever try to be, being surrounded by that many people would be absolutely exhausting. People looking at him, leaning into him, expecting him to engage? 

No thank you.

‘ _As if that many people would even like you…_ ’

He doesn’t realize he’s outright staring until he catches the eye of someone in the back of the group.

Kei blinks at the small body sitting down among the crowd of people, raising a brow as their eyes meet and neither of them look away. He seems to be having a lot of charged eye contact with people lately, was he losing his intimidating air? Becoming soft? Were people going to start… _talking to him_? 

He sure hopes not. He wears all black all the time for a very particular reason.

The smaller males tiny hand reaches out and for the messy man’s arm, prodding at it and then lifting to tuck his own grown out blond hair behind his ear. The dark haired male looks down from where he’s turned towards the hall doors, appearing to have been looking for someone's arrival. 

The smaller boy says something quietly that has the dark haired man whipping around, his gaze immediately locking with Kei’s. 

_What_. 

' _What.'_

Kei refuses to flinch, but his arched brow climbs higher on his forehead. The intense brown gaze has his spine straightening immediately. He feels a chill run through him, unsure if its fully formed fear at this point or if he's just on edge from last night events.

So _these_ are the eyes. 

The dark haired man seems startled at first, at a loss of what to do for a second as his cheeks grow warmer. The pudding head beside him still has his hand on his arm and he scoffs, ducking his head so his hair covers his face as well as a laugh.

After a moment it appears that the messy haired man decides something, determination once again sharpening his gaze as he shakes off the others hand. He lifts his arms, crossing them in front of his chest as he quirks his lips in a smirk. One of his intense eyes closes for a second, a flirty wink thrown at Kei as he continues to watch. 

Kei stares back, unimpressed.

After a beat more of locked eye contact, Kei deliberately turns back to his notes, reading over them and waiting for the lecture to begin. He misses the disappointment that darkens the other man’s eyes, the drop of his shoulders and also his mood. 

The professor walks in just as Kei finishes his quick skim of his notes on the reading. She calls out a greeting and students scramble to their seats, the shuffle of papers becoming louder for just a second. 

Kei slouches back against the wall, his neck thanking him in advance as he rests his head against it. He folds his long legs up underneath his seat, yet still manages to somehow knock his knee against the back of the row in front of him. He glares as the student in front of him throws an offended look over her shoulder and then turns back around with a huff. 

A low chuckle from beside him finally brings his attention to his seat neighbor. 

Somehow, Kei is unsurprised to see that the messy man has slid in beside him.

“Do you mind if I sit here, Mr.Legs-for-days?” the dark haired male asked, his eyes one hundred times more intense up close. 

“Well, looks like you already are,” Kei mutters in response, clicking his tongue in annoyance. 

The professor begins the lecture, forcing Kei to turn back towards the front. The grin the guy gives him irks the blond for some reason. Self satisfied and smug. 

Kei gets the childish urge to get up and move away from the other, though he squashes it down. He is an _adult_. 

Throughout the lecture, the dark haired man keeps his arm pressed up against Kei’s and no matter how far Kei leans into the person on his other side, he can’t seem to get away from him. Finally, he has to stop trying when he gets a shove and a glare from the student he was leaning over. 

The touch, like the brown eyed gaze, was scalding, not in temperature but in intensity. It was burning into Kei’s skin, making him shiver. 

By the end of the lecture, the blond’s body feels like a livewire, his magic buzzing in a way it only does when he feels irritated. How does this man bring such a reaction out in him? He can’t remember a time this has ever happened before. 

Kei does not cope well with new things or feelings, yet he seems to be getting them a lot lately. 

Though he doesn’t seem to be drawn to this man, like he was Bokuto, just on edge. So that's a plus.

Somehow he knows that if he talks to this guy, he would immediately know all the right buttons to push to maximize Kei's irritation. 

A soft mutter sounding suspiciously like ‘emotionally stunted’ brushes the back of his awareness and he throws his shoulder back into the wall in retaliation, pretending it was just a shrug gone wrong.

‘ _Hey!_ ’

Luckily for him, the end of class covers the rustling of his shirt, as weird as it is. 

He shoves his things into his bag haphazardly, strongly regretting sitting in the middle of the row as his classmates are slow to trickle out. He immediately feels antsy, somehow knowing that if he turns around he’s going to find the messy man already looking.

“So, Legs-for-Days, what’s your name?” Kei almost does a full body sigh as this line drifts over his shoulder. He doesn’t want this right now, and has a small debate with himself over how rude he’s able to be right now and still get away with.

“Why do you care?” is the best he can do, biting his cheek to stop the hardcore sass from springing forth. He watches the gathering of slow moving people at the door as they trickle out, willing them to _hurry the fuck up_.

“Woah, okay,” the stranger lifts his hands in a surrendering gesture, the movement enough to finally pull Kei’s gaze to him, “A tall hot mysterious blond goth, never talks to anyone in class- I’ve never seen you talk to anyone on campus actually- obviously I want to know more about you.”

‘ _Goth…. Kei he thinks your cool enough to be a goth!_ ’ Kei is glad that Corvo is having a good time, while he is a little disgruntled to know this man has been watching him while he was on campus and not just in the class they share.

“Ever thought there was a reason I never talk to anyone? It might just be because I don’t _want_ to,” he sneers at the man, crossing his arms and physically closing himself off. This man was so intense and after the events of the last few days Kei is being pushed to the edge.

“I considered this, but something tells me you aren’t as closed off to conversation as you come across. My name is Kuroo Tetsurou, and I actually already know your name _Tsukishima Kei_ ,” he purrs this, leaning into Kei’s space , “I just thought it would be polite to let you tell me yourself.”

Kei’s blood turns to ice in his veins, the color draining from his face and his expression suddenly as cold as he was feeling. This gives _Kuroo_ pause and he backtracks quickly out of Kei’s space. He feels Corvo mirror his sentiments, the bird’s panicked alarm ringing out sharp and loud in his mind.

‘ _Holy shit Kei get out of here! Who the fuck is this guy? Hes creepy! Fucking book it!_ ’ Corvo is straining against fabric, struggling to push out from the neck of his t-shirt. 

Luckily the room was almost empty now, the last of its occupants just passing through the door. This leaves Kei, Kuroo, and Kuroo’s tiny friend that is coming up behind the other man; so Kei didn’t care enough to push the raven back down.

If he can even register that right now.

Panic was threatening to overcome him again, but this time instead of scaring him, it makes him _angry_. He takes a step away from the taller male, watching the intense gaze take in and asses the tension in his body, caution overcoming the confident smugness in his brown eyes.

Squaring his shoulders and straightening his spine, Kei gathers all the brashness he doesn't have, the daylight giving him strength as he faces down the older man. He does his best to _loom_ over Kuroo, using his slight height difference to his advantage.

“Get the fuck away from me, and _stay the fuck away,_ ” the blond spits out with as much venom as possible. He barely registers both men flinching a step away from him, rage making him clench his fists and zero his gaze onto those brown eyes that know _too much_.

He spins on his heel, using his long legs to hurry away from the stunned duo as fast as he can without outright sprinting. 

As soon as he's outside, he slips a hand under his shirt, pressing his fingertips into a small tattoo just over his hip- a blended rune him and Koushi came up with. Soon he's making his way across campus, eyes glowing and form almost completely incorporeal as he swiftly avoids every obstacle in his path. 

He makes it out to where he was supposed to meet Yamaguchi in record time, sliding into step with the shorter man just as he was about to turn off the sidewalk to lean against a wall to wait.

“Kei!” his friend exclaims as his arm is suddenly clutched in a vice like grip, one that then proceeds to pull him bodily up the sidewalk, “What’s wrong? What happened?”

Yamaguchi properly loops his arm around Kei’s waist, fitting himself seamlessly under the taller mans arm and into the magic surrounding Kei as he continues his frantic dash away from campus- away from _Kuroo_.

By the time Kei’s breathing is back to normal they are a good 20 blocks away, closer to Yamaguchi's apartment and their workplace then they are to those stupidly intense eyes. 

“Kei?” this is said softly, accompanied by soft fingers grazing his cheek. 

The blond flinches away and huffs, still on edge and magic still buzzing. He can feel Corvo down on his stomach, spread out under his belly button and ready to fight his way out of the bottom of Kei’s shirt at a moments notice. He takes some comfort in this, turning his head and closing his eyes as he tries to unclench his jaw.

“Sorry. I’m fine,” his tone is clipped and he shivers as the buzz of the rune fades, leaving him feeling overtired and his legs sore. 

‘ _You used too much, you didn’t have to pull Tadashi into the effects too, stupid. Even you would get tired after pulling along- and cloaking!- two grown men._ ’ He feels more than hears Corvo lean over to his hip and crunch down on the faded rune, the zing of the tattoo disappearing and being cut off from his magic making him wince and finally open his eyes.

He looks back to his brown haired friend, taking in the furrowed brow and the worried set of his mouth. He sighs and presses back against Yamaguchi's side, letting the man take most of his weight without warning. 

“I’m really fine… Sorry. Just had a weird encounter. Some… creep started talking to me after class and I wanted to get away from him,” he wrinkles his nose as Yamaguchi listens. Both him and Corvo are actively trying to smooth his emotions over, so in almost no time at all his heart rate is back to normal and the panic is receding. 

Yamaguchi takes a moment to nod his head, thinking this through. 

“Well that’s a pretty good reason to be a little frantic. Don’t worry Tsukki, I’ll keep you safe!” the shorter male throws him a cheesy wink as he pulls him through the door of the convenience store they were standing in front of, making Kei roll his eyes, “I’ll also make sure we get some cake for a snack tonight.”

“You’re the best,” Kei sighs as he leans over the shorter males shoulder, pressing into his back as he comes to stop in front of the snacks. 

They had made plans to have a _Best Friend Bonding Night_ _™_ , as Yamaguchi called it, and were planning to spend all night playing video games and eating junk food ‘just like old times’. No matter the arguments Kei made- “ _We’re_ old _Tadashi, there's a reason we don’t do this anymore”_ \- Yamaguchi would hear none of it. 

They make it to Yamaguchi's apartment within 20 minutes of picking out the first snack, Kei not releasing his grip on his friends arm even once. He also takes every chance that Yamaguchi was still to lean on him even more, and thank god for the freckled man because he doesn't comment on it once, just continues silently shifting his weight to support the much taller blond. 

As they settle into a blanket nest on Yamaguchi's couch, changed into pajamas and freshly showered, Kei gives the other man one of his rare genuine smiles.

“Thanks,” he hopes Yamaguchi understands all that he was thanking him for, because Kei was sure that he could count the moments in his life that he had been genuine with anyone on one hand. 

The freckled man’s face lights up with a huge smile and he reaches out to lightly pinch Kei’s warm and bath flushed cheek. He then turns away to pass his friend a can of cider as they finally get comfy for a nice relaxing night. 

Surrounded by pillows and snacks, Kei tries to exhale all the tension he's been carrying lately. 

He sinks into the plush surface and thinks that he can _finally breathe_.

* * *

The next morning, as Kei is making his way home from Yamaguchi's, he passes campus in the quiet hours of the morning. Very few students at his university have the confidence to take early morning classes, as such the campus is almost empty. 

He’s almost out of sight of the campus itself when a shiver runs up his spine. He surreptitiously casts a glance to his surroundings, the feeling of being watched a familiar one by now. He breathes in through his mouth, straining himself to take in a faint yet familiar scent.

He wants to wipe the sour, electric taste right off of his tongue. 

Him and Corvo share a moment of absolute panic before swallowing it down; now is _not the time_.

‘ _Run, Kei!_ ’

Kei quickens his pace and as soon as he makes it around the next corner he breaks out into a sprint, adrenaline pushing him faster as- for the third time in the last few days- panic courses through him. 

‘ _Don’t use another rune! You can do this without it! Koushi won’t be able to replace it for a while!_ ’ Corvo's logic is sound, but he's once again pushing at Kei's tight shirt, trying to find any way to slip out as electricity licks at the back of the blond's neck. 

His feet pound on the pavement and he can already feel the sweat pooling at his brow as his heartbeat picks up. He’s by no means _frail_ , but maybe he should start working out again.

If he gets away from whatever the fuck is following him that is. 

The electricity is almost overwhelming by the time he makes is to the train station. He tries not to physically push any of the early morning transistors as he fights his way onto the platform, though he does project the thought of _Get out of my way!_ laced with slight magic at them, hoping the suggestion takes hold. 

‘ _Kei!_ ’ Corvo’s panicked shout trips him up, the wave of sour electricity cresting, coming to a point, about to swallow him whole-

The doors close. 

The magic vanishes. 

It leaves Kei on the floor of the train, pressing his back against the opposite door, chest heaving as he fights for breath. His glasses fall into his lap as his body slumps forward, having been thrown askew by his sudden and frantic motions.

He looks up and out the window of the train door as it takes off, making blurry eye contact with a figure on the outside. 

The figure is almost shapeless, the only features Kei is able to register is an oversized grey hoodie….

… and a wide- manic- toothy grin. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> spooky!!!! our moon is overwhelmed!!!!! what to do!!!!! 
> 
> fun useless trivia fact: the blended rune tsukki uses is made up of two runes- 'swift' and 'mist'
> 
> once again thanks to banri for editing this at work like a true pal <3
> 
> and thanks to all your comments!! they really keep me going, sorry i dont respond, but i do read and love every single one!!! ๐·°(৹˃̵﹏˂̵৹)°·๐


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hopefully things get better for our boy....

  
_Kei was 6 years old._

_He’d sat cross-legged on his mama's bed as she sat in front of him. He wished, more than anything, for her to reach up and touch his hair like he saw all the other mothers do._

_He wished she wasn’t so far away, sitting closed off from him with her arms over her chest._

_He’s known she’d been sad since his daddy left, known she was still trying her best for them. Watched her as she made sure to smile at him and Akiteru as she was cooking, or when she sent them off to school- when she tucked them in._

_He still wished she would hug him._

_She hadn’t in so long._

_Kei was 6 years old and he sat cross-legged on his mother’s bed, hands out in front of him as tears leaked freely down his cheeks._

_He didn’t make a sound as she started to tell him about magic, focused instead on the hands he held in front of him like he didn’t recognize them._

_Kei was 6 years old when he learned he was_ dangerous _._

* * *

‘ _Kei… you haven't slept at all…_ ’ 

He registers this somewhere in his mind.

He does.

Corvo’s voice makes sense.

He had collapsed into bed as soon as he got home, clothes and all. He’s been in the same position since then, staring at the same spot on the wall, legs and arms curled into himself. 

He’s ignoring all of Corvo’s attempts to get him to sleep, to eat, to do something other than _exist_ in his state of _panic_ -

Kei has to remind himself he’s human. He’s fine, he’s always fine. He’s a human with human emotions and feeling them sometimes is normal.

Expressing them is a different story.

He finally closes his eyes as the sun peaks over the horizon, his room slowly lighting up with a dark grey light. He breathes in, taking in the familiar scents, his own magic, Corvo’s- his _space_.

There isn’t a threat here. 

He’s safe.

Except for the letter. The damn letter. The letter with his _address_ \- his _name_ -

He heaves another breath, then another, and another, until his breathing is level and manageable. He opens his eyes and slowly pulls himself into an upright position, swinging his long legs over the side of the bed and onto the floor.

He stares at his feet on the floor, and he breathes in.

Hes human, with human emotions. He has magic, and it’s grounded, he has the tattoos, it’s not wild- it’s okay. He has Corvo.

He breathes out.

Hes human.

He can’t believe he was so nonchalant about this just days prior, teasing the raven about overreacting- _overprotecting_. 

The same raven who has stood vigil all night, not leaving the windowsill, watching over him without being asked. 

Now he comes to Kei, pressing himself against the blond’s slim torso. He lets Kei stroke soft fingers over strong wings, let’s him run his fingertips over the ends of his feathers. He let’s Kei run his knuckles over his chest and belly, and doesn’t move when Kei presses a bit firmer into his chest to feel the avian quick heartbeat.

What is wrong with him. Just a few days ago he was scoffing at the idea of this- and now. Now he’s falling apart at the seams- from what?

From a few _creepy coincidences_?

‘ _Kei_ …’ The bird has been silent until now, letting Kei’s thoughts spiral into themselves, crashing together in a tumultuous chorus, but now he speaks. He reaches out with his own magic and smooths down Kei’s frayed edges. He takes the blond man and puts his corners back in, reaffirms their places in the puzzle that is his partner. 

His Mage.

Kei heaves another deep breath, holding it for a few moments before he lets it explode back out of him.

He reminds himself he’s human.

He’s under control.

Finally he stands up.

* * *

_Kei was 6 years old when his mother took a deep breath, finally uncrossed her arms and began to explain._

_“Kei, what you have to understand is that magic wants to be used. It loves it. When baby mages are born we’re… chosen… marked by an element, or a celestial body, any part of nature. We form a connection, and then we can feel the magic that part of nature is known for. We can control it, to an extent, manipulate the magic it possesses. We can harness it, and do amazing things!_

_“But... magic itself is also a force of nature, and it wants to stay that way. It’s free, Kei, and because of that, sometimes it doesn’t want to be controlled,” she stopped here, looked at his palms that were bleeding steadily just hours before, looked at the burns that have yet to fully heal that ran up his small arms, arms that pushed- arms that hurt, “And sometimes, there are baby Mages born with a very strong connection. Too strong. Too strong for them to comprehend yet, or control._

_“Magic has to be grounded. It needs a physical anchor, something to latch on to. Like when Akiteru holds your hand when you’re scared, do you get it? It needs a real world counterpart, something to remind it that it’s real and not just wild. It needs to be soothed- smoothed out to fit into the real world corners._

_“Adult mages join covens. That’s where I go every week when the babysitter comes. You understand? Covens ground our magic in something bigger than ourselves. It's like…. A huge container, where our magic gets to swirl together and even each others out- it’s a balance. There are other ways to even things out, but those aren’t safe._

_“Magic is strong but it’s still… primitive… it responds to emotions Kei. It responds especially to_ strong _emotions. Anger, sadness, protective feelings. So sometimes, even when its grounded, even for adults like mama, it doesn’t work how we want it to. Sometimes it likes to act on feelings._

_“Kei, you’re very special. You’re coming into your magic already. This usually doesn’t happen until around Akiteru’s age at least, maybe even later. My magic didn’t develop until I was in my late teens! Do you understand Kei?_

_“Me and your teachers weren’t prepared for this…! When I picked you up, one of the teachers at your school told me about this great place. It’s a school for special children, ones like you that have lots of magic. There are specialists, and all kinds of teachers. You would learn so much!” she grabs at her skirt, but it doesn’t keep him from noticing the tremors that shake through her hands._

_He finally lifted his eyes to see the storm brewing in hers, a wild mashup of emotions behind unshed tears._

_“Mama, are we going to go there?” he’d asked in a small voice, even though he was sure he’d already known the answer._

_She sniffed, her back straight and mouth set._

_“No honey, just you.”_

* * *

_‘I think this is worse.’_

Kei heaves a put upon sigh, drawing it out as he rolls his tired eyes. He clenches his fists in the pocket of the huge hoodie, eyeing a passerby that comes too close as he makes his way to his local coffee shop. His intent is injecting caffeine straight into his bloodstream so he can study a bit on his day off.

“How can it be worse? You told me to wear looser clothes, and I did. Now you’re gonna complain about these?” Kei mumbles this, looking straight ahead as he tries not to move his lips, less he gains weird glances from the other people on the street. The last thing he wants to do right now is to draw anyone's attention. 

‘ _It’s a sauna in here! And your weird human odor is just… contained!_ ’ Corvo flutters around his torso as he says this, pressing other tattoos out of his way as he squirms, ‘ _Why couldn’t you be in to jewelry? I could be a nice crown. Or a staff! I could be a_ staff _Kei!_ ’

Kei scoffs at him, lifting a hand to rub at his eyes as he does so. He would be a laughing stock if he had something as old fashioned as a staff. Mages hadn’t needed focus items since the 17th century, and even then it was just a status thing. Utterly ridiculous.

‘ _Okay rude boy, just because you have no fashion sense doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be a great staff,_ ’ Kei realizes that even has he says this in a light and teasing tone, Corvo is vigilantly scanning the area, alert as ever. He appreciates the bird a bit more for trying to lift his mood, reaching down to pat at where he's hiding through his hoodie as he finally enters the glass door of the cafe.

“Careful Corvo, you’re dating yourself.”

Once inside, both him and the bird breathe out a sigh of relief as cool air washes over them. Kei reaches up and tugs on the sweater, trying to move the cool air in and the hot air out. 

As soon as he’s situated with the largest iced coffee he could buy- filled with as much sugar that Corvo would let him put in- he makes his way back out onto the sun warmed sidewalk. 

‘ _It really is much too warm to be outside… let's just stay inside until sunset,_ ’ him and Corvo can both feel the sweat already sliding down Kei’s neck and torso.

Kei huffs an agreement, taking a huge gulp of his coffee before sighing and setting off down the sidewalk. 

Corvo is still scanning Kei’s peripherals, so when a hint of surprise and curiosity unfurls at the back of Kei’s awareness after a few minutes of walking, he turns his head immediately to see what the bird had locked in on. 

Standing there, having just come out onto the sidewalk from an adjacent alley, was Bokuto. He was in an awkward half-walking position, shock having made him freeze in place. Kei regards him curiously from where he stands, sipping his cold drink. 

“Bokuto Koutarou,” Kei says, in lieu of a real greeting. This seems to snap Bokuto out of his startled stupor, a grin sliding its way onto his handsome features. 

“Tsukishima Kei! What a surprise!” Bokuto’s rough and genuine voice soothes a few of Kei’s still frayed nerves as he presses into Kei’s space, “I wasn’t sure if it was you! You look like hell! Did something happen, are you okay?”

The only reason Kei doesn’t take offense to the blunt statement is the soft aqua swirling in from the bottom of Bokuto’s golden eyes and distracting him. It pools around his pupils as they widen in concern. 

Kei feels himself relax further into the others presence as he watches, fighting back a pleased blush that this man was worried about him. 

‘ _He looks like an owl when he does that. Tell him! Your inclination towards birds is showing, you freak._ ’

“Just haven’t been sleeping very well,” Kei huffs and averts his eyes, bringing his coffee up to his face and almost hiding behind it. 

There is a beat of silence and when Kei drags his gaze back to the owlish man, he is being studied- Bokuto looks like he’s taking him all in, a serious frown on his face and light periwinkle blue mixing through the gold like smoke. 

Just when Kei starts getting fidgety and uncomfortable, the bright grin comes back, like the sun once again re-emerging after a dark and tumultuous thunderstorm. 

“Do you want to go for a walk?” Bokuto asks, his eyes flashing back to brilliant gold.

* * *

  
They decide to wander around a nearby park, on a trail that borders a small lake. 

Once again Bokuto has taken it upon himself to lead the conversation, and Kei is happy just to listen to his rough voice go on about everything and nothing. 

The shorter man seems to know Kei isn’t feeling up to his full, bright personality, or else he’s not feeling up to it himself, because he seems a bit subdued. Kei appreciates it, thoughtfulness or not, as he listens to Bokuto go on about soft subjects. 

He’s just finishing up a story about a particularly feisty elder when he slides himself towards Kei and out of the way of another couple walking the opposite way down the path. The move presses his shoulder into Kei’s and the blond huffs out a breath as he feels himself tense, and then immediately relax.

‘ _Touch starved asshole, if you like it just do it…_ ’

Kei feels his mouth turn down into an automatic scowl and he turns his face away from Bokuto, though he doesn’t move his arm away. 

He can feel Bokuto’s eyes on him, and he wonders what color they are now…

He looks.

They stop walking, instead standing on the side of the path staring into each others eyes- Kei is captivated and Bokuto is searching him again. 

Bokuto’s eyes are sharp and focused as dark orange and pink swirl together. 

They stay like that for what feels like forever.

Finally, Bokuto gives him a small, private smile, eyes flashing back to bright gold as he presses into Kei’s side. 

“Cold?” Bokuto teases as he practically shoves himself under Kei’s arm, wrapping an arm around Kei’s slim waist. 

Kei thinks he grumbles something that resembles a negative answer before hes ducking his face, covering his mouth with the front of his sweater. He can already feel the heat of Bokuto’s hand making him sweat, that heat almost rivaling the blush on his cheeks. 

Bokuto laughs, bright and airy, as they continue their walk.

‘ _He already knows you so well Kei._ ’

Kei folds a smile into the worn fabric of his sweater, feeling a tension he didn’t think would ease anytime soon sink into Bokuto’s strong arm around him.

* * *

  
_Kei was 6 years old._

_He waited for his mama to come pick him up for school. Him and Yamaguchi were passing the time as they normally did._

_They were standing on the jungle gym, right at the top, where they could survey the area and see the rest of the children running around like utter_ fools _._

_Yamaguchi was snickering about some comment he made, some cruel snippet about a classmate- when said classmate decides to climb up behind them and push Yamaguchi down the slide._

_Kei watched him tumble, the world moving in slow motion, until he hit the sand. Looked down from his perch at the top into Yamaguchi’s shocked and slowly filling eyes._

_His breaking point was when the first tear made its way down his friends freckled cheek._

_Kei is 6 years old, and he completely blacked out._

_It was only for a second, but he came back to himself- he came back to screaming. To smoking and bleeding arms and his classmate unconscious at the bottom of the jungle gym ladder, two child sized hand prints burned through the front of his shirt and into his chest._

Something _was swirling around him, lashing into his arms- dragging clawmark-like cuts into his skin. The screaming turned out to be himself, and he stumbled backwards-_ away from it! _\- and straight off the metal fortress._

_He looked up at the playground structure, his back in the sand. His only thought was that there used to be three of them up there, and somehow they all ended up on the ground._

_He felt the sting of sand in his cuts, and his lungs being squeezed- he couldn’t breathe. His brain couldn’t wrap around a sure explanation, couldn’t quite comprehend what went so wrong in the span of a few seconds._

_Kei was 6 years old, and the first encounter with his own magic left only one feeling to fill his chest._

Fear.

* * *

  
Somehow, his walk with Bokuto ends up with him meeting the man at the campus library the next day. 

Though this time he is fully rested, having slept enough to function at least. 

He’s back to his unaffected facade, his emotions and inner turmoil, as well as his magic, settled down with Corvo’s help. His poker face was back in place, betraying exactly none of his feelings as he makes his way through campus. 

He’s feeling a bit more put together this morning, the loose shirt he has on a lot thinner than yesterdays hoodie, and luckily the sky is covered in grey clouds. 

‘ _Thank god, I thought we were going to die in the sun!_ ’

Kei smirks a bit at the over dramatic bird as he pushes through the ornate campus library doors.

‘ _He said he would be on the third floor, right? How romaaaaaantic! Hidden between the stacks!_ ’ Kei’s blush was back as he climbs the stairs, and he huffs at the fact there’s no conveniently placed wall that he can slam his hip into to shut Corvo up.

He thinks about ‘tripping’ on the stairs, but that thought is quickly shot down.

‘ _Like you would ever let yourself be embarrassed like that!_ ’

This is a very true statement.

He sees Bokuto’s hair first. 

The other man is facing away from him and gesturing wildly as he talks to two other people that sit at the table with him. Kei feels himself soften as he approaches, almost stopping and turning around on principle. He was being absolutely ridiculous, he hardly knew the man! Had talked to him, what, like 3 times? 

Kei was _absolutely not_ some teenager with a crush.

He recognizes Akaashi sitting beside Bokuto, leaning away from flailing arms as he tries to focus on notes and textbooks he has laid out on the table. 

Bokuto finally settles down as Kei is about a metre away from the table, and the final person comes into view. 

Kei jerks to a halt, his heart plummeting as he locks eyes with the person sitting across from Bokuto, who looks just as shocked to see him. 

There's a frozen moment in time where no one moves, no one breathes.

Then all at once, Akaashi is lifting his gaze to the other two, expression shocked- Bokuto is whipping his head around, eyes flashing bright orange with wisps of red- Kuroo is throwing himself away from the table trying to rise to his feet at the same time, a shout of “ _Tsuki_ -!” passing his lips, eyes desperate. 

And Kei is spinning on his heel. 

Right into another person.

A quiet ‘oof’ is pressed into Kei’s chest and he feels soft fingertips graze the skin of his wrist-

‘ _Get out of here right now Kei!_ ’ the last few days come rushing back to him- the letter- he’s being followed- he’s panicking- Bokuto he knows- lied- just the same- 

-before he quickly side steps the small body. He thinks he tries to whisper an apology through his barely concealed emotion as he rushes back the way he came. 

He thinks he hears Bokuto ask Kuroo what the fuck he did, but its lost behind a hot wash of shame and _betrayal_. The sound of his heartbeat covers his own footsteps as he starts down the stairs two at a time.

He bursts out into the rain, and immediately ducks around the side of the building, quickly making his way through the back of campus.

‘ _Take the long way home, stick to the streets! It’s okay Kei, don’t use a rune, there's lots of people out._ ’

He makes it home in record time with Corvo coaching him through it and collapses against his door, breathing hard and heart beating fast. He’s dripping rainwater all over his entry way, but at least this time he remembers his frantic sprint.

Kei thinks that it might be becoming his new norm to run home in a panic. 

He really hopes it doesn’t. 

‘ _Seconded_.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... or not....
> 
> i think i have more fun world building then i do writing the actual content. i've spent so long thinking about how magic works im so pumped about it.
> 
> did u kno some moon magic characteristics are transformation, emotion, and instincts? :^)
> 
> ONCE AGAIN thank you to my beautiful beta boi banri, without whomst i would never have the confidence to post a chapter. <3


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not much is happening in these chapters... or is it... sorry not sorry :)
> 
> theres a confusing convo in here somewhere, pls stay on ur toes i tried my kanye best to make it clear who was saying what.
> 
> omg i forgot a sassy one liner i must insert it, sorry if this is causing a lot of emails .·´¯`(>▂<)´¯`·.

“So you’re _sure_ it’s this guy? Positive?” Suga turns back from where he had relocated to stare out the window into the street, eyes roaming over the three men sitting around the room. He crosses his arms over his chest as he paces back towards them and presses his hip into Sawamura’s shoulder. 

“I _just_ told you I don’t know for sure… he just… feels _off_.”

‘ _And he knew your name, and admitted to watching you around campus!_ ’ Corvo is tucked around his wrist today, a cramped space for the big bird, but somehow he's making it work. Kei is keeping his hand safely inside of the too long cardigan sleeve- courtesy of Akiteru’s closet the last time he visited him- as Corvo squirms around on the back of it.

“And he knew my name, and admitted to watching me,” Kei says from his spot by the door, pressing his shoulder blades firmly into the wall behind him and holding onto his elbows for dear life.

He had successfully avoided the class with Kuroo and his favorite coffee shop for two weeks now; had started abusing his magic just a bit to skulk around campus like a pariah and been making sure not to leave an impression on anyone on the early train.

In the two weeks he’s been doing his best impression of a ghost, he’s been expecting one of the three stooges to show up at his door, for if Kuroo truly _was_ his stalker, he would already know the blondes address. 

He isn’t quite sure what to think anymore when he compares the frantic, almost pleading look Kuroo had in the library and the increased number of instances at his apartment.

The calls were coming nightly, and no matter what he did- texted the number, blocked it, screamed down the line- it continued on until Kei picked up the phone and let whoever it was breathe at him for five silent, hellish minutes. 

The blank note cards were left in his mailbox every morning and every night, and yet his buildings security cameras picked up nothing and his neighbors were none the wiser.

 _Luckily_ , he hasn’t been followed again since his mad dash to the train because if he was ever followed to his apartment, he doesn’t think any of the neighbors would be any use _whatsoever_.

So it was with a bag full of card stock that had a distinct flavor of battery acid and a worry low in his gut that this was becoming his new _normal_ , that he had stumbled into work that day; and then after his long shift, straight into Suga’s office. 

He had reached a mental state of chaotic calm, his rational mind taking over and making him feel slightly detached from everything. Corvo had a firm grip on his magic, and he was sure that was also contributing to the blanket of calm that surrounded him.

Suga had taken control immediately, shoving a cup of tea into his cold fingers and demanding he start talking. As soon as he was through his tale, Suga had left with furious steps and returned with the resident empath and curse breaker in tow. 

So here they were, the four of them spread out around Suga’s office, card stock and Kei’s phone on the small table between them. They had talked and brainstormed until it was well past sunset, and none of them had anything to show for it.

“Okay so you for _sure_ can’t get a read on it?” Suga was getting antsy now, tapping his foot against Sawamura’s chair and letting the dark haired man’s pointed look roll right off his shoulders.

“Suga. There's nothing gained from getting flustered about this, so _sit down_ ,” Sawamura finally spoke up, hooking his foot around a nearby chair to pull it over and guiding Suga into it, despite the fairer man’s half-hearted protests, “Why don’t we summarize what we know? Start fresh.”

Suga takes a visible breath to settle himself and closes his eyes, he straightens his tense spine and presses his thigh into Sawamura’s. He waves Kei over to sit and complete their little circle of chairs and legs, and once the blond is settled as well, his wrist pressing Corvo into his abdomen, he opens his eyes.

“So we already know it’s a curse,” he begins, arms crossing over his chest and one hand pressing into his chin, “Daichi wasn’t able to get a read on it, which means the curse wasn’t on the card itself. This is good because it means Tsukishima isn’t the intended target, but bad because we have no flippin’ idea what it _could_ mean.”

Suga is working himself up again, so Sawamura reaches over and presses his hand to the back of the others neck, taking over smoothly, “Curses only have power if there are strong feelings to latch them on to, either the castor’s or the subject of the curse.”

“But what kind of strong feelings could be directed at Tsukishima? He’s cold to everyone and gets close to no one- no offence Tsukishima,” Ennoshita cut in, and Kei nods at him to convey nonchalance and a little smugness, “He’s literally a lukewarm presence in all of our lives, and we’ve worked with him for years- again, no offence.”

“I mean he is kind of an asshole,” Sawamura is smirking at him, and Kei’s own smug smirk becomes a full on shit-eating grin. He’s so glad at least some coworkers know him so well.

“Yeah, but not so much of an asshole that someone could _hate_ him, right?” Suga said, incredulous, uncrossing his arms to gesture wildly, “Like he’s still strangely endearing right? Like a… Like a cat!”

Kei lets his face fall into a deadpan expression as he stares at Suga while the others holler in laughter, heads thrown back and hands over their stomachs. Corvo decides to join in as well, and Kei can feel the raven rolling up his arm as he goes on. 

Suga gives him a sheepish smile and a shrug in apology, adding his own soft chuckles to the mix as Kei hunches down more in his chair and rolls his eyes. Sawamura- the shit- lifts his hands in front of his face in a mockery of cats paws that set all three of them dissolve into laughter so hard they're in danger of falling out of their chairs.

“Are you finished?” he asks, irritation slipping into his tone. It just sets off another round of giggles and he taps his foot against the ground as he waits. He’s not actually that annoyed, but he would never let that slip to any of these men.

‘ _Plus, Koushi probably knows already._ ’ 

That's true. Suga is dangerous like that.

The other three men are calming down now, wiping tears from their eyes and righting themselves in the chairs as he watches on with a fondness hidden behind his mask of indifference. Suga definitely knows, as he reaches out and kicks his shin lightly, still smiling at him.

 _Disgusting_. 

‘ _Shut up, sourpants. You’re allowed to like your coworkers._ ’ This line definitely earns a scowl.

“Sorry Tsukishima, but that analogy was perfect for you,” there is still humor coating Sawamura’s words as he says this and claps his hands together, “Anyway! Curses. It’s definitely traces of a curse, though I can’t tell what kind, who its on or who it’s meant for. Without any of that information, I can’t even begin to try and break it without being in the vicinity of the castor.”

“I also couldn’t get a clear read on it. The impression is distorted, which means whoever it was was probably wearing gloves, or they just didn’t handle it that much?” Ennoshita seems uncertain of this, but the other three men nod, trusting him to tell them the important information.

“So… No clue on where these are coming from, no clue who is sending them. Only that they apparently have some strong feelings for something, and this stubborn boy doesn’t want to involve the cops or cause problems for Ukai,” Suga is visibly more relaxed than he was before the rambunctious laughter, but there's a tension beside his eyes that betrays his worry.

“That is not what I said,” Kei grumbles. He doesn’t think telling Suga that he ‘doesn’t want the loudmouths involved’ should constitute being worried about causing problems for the delinquent looking boss, but he guesses the grey haired man can think whatever he wants. 

Suga gives him a condescending look but graciously drops the conversation there, going back to brainstorming possible solutions. Kei listens for a bit, going on about things they had already talked about, and he starts to fade out of the conversation, letting his mind wander.

He’s unsure of how much time has passed, but is rudely startled out of his thoughts by Sawamura slapping a firm hand right in between his shoulder blades.

“We’re heading out. Make sure to be careful, Tsukishima, and if there's anything else that happens, make sure to come to us. You have our numbers,” Sawamura is using his stern supervisor voice that makes the rowdy children shut up real quick, so Kei reigns in his sass for now and gives him a curt nod instead.

Ennoshita also presses a hand to his shoulder, giving him a meaningful look before saying, softer, yet still firmly, “Take care of yourself.”

Kei watches their backs as they leave before turning his attention to Suga, who has been watching him.

“Well, should we replace a few of your runes? I was also thinking we should add a few more protection ones in, I’ve been storing up my magic for a few days so we should be able to do everything right now,” Suga has turned from him and is bustling around gathering supplies, so he doesn’t see Kei’s relieved exhale.

Kei doesn’t respond verbally, just gets up to lock the door and whip his shirt off. 

When Suga is sitting, supplies spread out beside him and needle in his hand, Kei settles in beside him and prepares himself for what he’s sure to be a long session.  
  


* * *

If asked, Kei would say he is dealing with his healing tattoos just fine at the moment, not an itch to be had.

If it was Suga asking him, he undoubtedly would know Kei was lying outright.

‘ _Why don’t you just scratch it?_ ’ Corvo taunts from somewhere on his leg. Even with keeping a strict watch on their surroundings, the bird has been repeatedly trying to trip him up by pressing through his skin and into his pant legs, trying to ‘take his revenge’ on Kei.

“If you would stop being annoying, neither of us would even be feeling his problem!” Kei hisses into the collar of his shirt, speed walking past students as he tries to make his way off campus without tripping.

‘ _After that stunt you pulled this morning with the coffee maker! You still_ dare _ask for_ my _help! You’re lucky I’m even keeping our contract up, you rat bastard!_ ’ Corvo has started pushing his full wings out, and he can feel the feathers getting caught on denim as he restrains himself from kicking his shin into a nearby tree just to hurt the avian brained idiot.

“Will you quit it! Oh my god people are going to think I have extra limbs!” He shakes his leg once, hard and while he’s sure no one is looking, and then resumes walking. 

He’s almost to the campus entrance when Corvo his sliding up his body to push into his neck with a startled ‘ _Kei!_ ’

At first he thinks it’s just the bird trying to throw him off balance, but then he gets a hint of genuine panic from their connection and focuses in on what the other is looking at. 

Which happens to be walking straight towards him, eyes focused on him with unknown intent.

He takes a half step backwards, but freezes when the other man does the same and they stay there, blinking at each other and frozen in awkward positions. 

Slowly, with his arms outstretched and nonthreatening in front of him, the shorter male approaches Kei’s tense form. Kei still hasn’t bolted when the other man comes to a stop in front of him, but his hand is gripping the bottom of his shirt, where Corvo waits to spring out and into action at a moment’s notice. 

“Tsukishima Kei,” he says, voice and eyes soft as he watches. Kei’s own eyes narrow into slits, scrutinizing the half blond hair and intensely focused eyes. He lets his mouth open slightly, huffing in a breath and trying to get a taste for the other’s magic.

“How did you know that?” he asks, voice shrewd and clipped.

“Kuroo asked almost everyone in the class until someone knew who you were,” was the quiet reply. 

Kei wrinkles his nose and then glares down it at the other, but that answer definitely soothes something inside of him, so he asks, “What do you want?”

“My magic is connected to Mercury, so it’s touch telepathy,” Kei immediately recoils from him, and the blond lets his hands slip into his sleeves without a change of expression, “Don’t worry. I won’t read you without permission, but I have. Do you remember knocking into me? You were thinking about the reason you were running…” 

Kei stares at him and can feel his own face paling, and he almost follows the now familiar pattern of running away, but the shorter man hasn’t finished talking.

“... I’m not planning on telling the police, about your problem or your… roommate...” his eyes are intense as they gaze into Kei’s, and he hates that those words make him relax a fraction, “However, _they_ want to talk to you. So in exchange for my silence, I’d like you to come with me.”

‘ _Blackmail! Don’t listen to him Kei! Only I’m allowed to blackmail you!_ ’ If Kei was less tense, he would snort at that, but right now he felt like a mouse, trapped under this pudding heads paw.

“Fine,” he spits out, after an extended and awkward silence, and the other relaxes a slight tension in his shoulders.

“My name is Kenma, and if you aren’t busy we can go to their house now…?” the smaller male turns slightly, gesturing off campus as he waits for Kei to follow.

Kei sighs, guard still up, as he wholeheartedly wishes he had taken an extra shift this afternoon.

He falls into step beside... _Kenma_ .  
  


* * *

Kei is tired of these meetings, now that he has had two of them in a matter of days.

He’s sitting, arms crossed over his chest, at a small dining room table in a two bedroom apartment just a few stops away from his own. There are four other men at the table, all looking down at the table top in contemplation of the story he’s just told.

“I swear that’s not me. I’m so sorry I spooked you, I didn’t mean to,” Kuroo Tetsurou is gazing at him imploringly as he says this, eyes sad and expression vulnerable as he makes his case. He’s been repeating the same sentiments since Kei had walked through the door, and after rehashing his reasons for his sleepless nights, Kei has, emotionally and physically, had enough.

“It’s fine. Stop apologizing,” he spits, turning his head to glare at the dining room wall.

“It’s not! That must have been so scary oh my god! And I-” he’s cut off by Kei’s knuckles against the table ringing out in a loud knock.

“I said it’s fine,” Kei sighs, reaching up with the hand he just stopped Kuroo with to rub at the skin between his eyes, “If you aren’t the one actively ruining my life, you have nothing to apologize for. None of you do, so I don’t really know why I’m here.” 

He looks up at his small crowd with a raised eyebrow, meeting each of their eyes in turn.

“We wanted to apologize, and maybe get to know you…” Bokuto trails off, head hung low and blush on his cheeks. 

“I just wanted to know why you have a contract with a demon,” Kenma interjects, and the other three look up at him in shock.

“You didn’t tell them?” Kei guesses, earning his own shocked looks as Kenma shakes his head at him, “Why?”

“It wasn’t my crime,” he replies simply, adding in a shrug. Kei kind of wants to push him over and the other three are looking in between them like the're having a tennis match. Bokuto mouths the word 'crime' at Akaashi across the table.

Him and Kenma are locked in another staring contest, and finally he slumps down in his chair and huffs, “I stumbled upon him while I was in high school.”

“But why form a contract when you know it’s illegal to have a familiar?” Kenma is really starting to get on Kei’s nerves, and he starts bouncing his leg as he glares down at the table.

‘ _It’s okay Kei, you can tell them. He hasn’t turned you in yet and I don’t think they’re going to… I think they like you,_ ’ Corvo, who was still nestled under his belly button, makes his way up his chest and presses his beak up his neck. He noses into Kei’s chin and he sees all the eyes snap to the exposed skin of his throat with the appearance of what seems to be a moving tattoo. Corvo is also sending him some calm and reassuring feelings, which he relaxes into, his glare softening into a scowl.

“He was dying,” he says softly, uncrossing his arms and entwining his fingers together before putting them onto the table top, “I had the magic to spare to help him, and we entered a contract by accident. He’s been with me ever since, and I’ve never felt compelled by him, so I let him stay.”

‘ _Let me!_ ’ Corvo squawks, pressing a wing out from his chest and making his shirt tent up, ‘ _You wouldn’t get anywhere without me! We’re grossly co-dependant by now Kei, just admit it!_ ’

Kei’s frown deepens at this, and Kenma doesn’t miss it. Kei doesn’t think he misses a lot of things. 

“You’re talking to it? Right now?” he leans forward, just slightly, but otherwise doesn’t betray his excitement.

Kei nods, “We share thoughts and feelings. His name is Corvo.”

The bird seems to press out his wing in a wave this time, judging by the way Kei’s shirt moves back and forth in front of him. This draws a little chuckle from Bokuto, and the others seem to relax from a tension that Kei hadn’t noticed was in the room.

“He takes the form of a tattoo?” Kei is already shaking his head by the time Kenma finishes his question.

“No, he has a more corporeal form, but if a huge bird is seen on my shoulder out and about it may garner some unwanted attention.”

"Isn't that... dangerous?" Kuroo seems hesitant to talk to him yet, but still voices the question, making Kei frown at him.

“I wasn’t some fucking asshole teenager that Wikihow’d “How to summon demon 101”. It just happened. I had the magic, and Corvo was dying in front of me. He’s too stupid to live alone.”  _ And  _ I’m  _ too dangerous _ , he doesn’t say. Kuroo shrinks under his scrutiny, as if scolded. 

“Can we see him?” this is the first time Akaashi has spoken since Kenma had towed him through the door, and he feels himself nodding before he has the conscious thought to.

He feels Corvo shuffle back down his torso and he stands to lift his shirt up just enough for the bird to wiggle out. He doesn’t miss Bokuto and Akaashi’s eyes darting towards his naked torso, and feels grateful that at least Kenma and Kuroo are sitting directly across from him so he doesn’t have to explain the tattoos that adorn his hips as well.

Corvo is hopping across the tabletop towards Kenma, who seems frozen in wonder as his bright cat-like gaze takes in the giant raven. His attention is drawn towards Kei as he lets out a huff and sits back down.

“You can touch him, he can’t do anything to anyone while under contract,” Kei supplies as Corvo preens. He, along with the other three, watch Kenma reach forward with shaking fingers and run his palm over Corvo’s head. 

“I saw a demon once when I was little, my aunt is a hunter,” Kenma says, seemingly out of nowhere, taking Kei off guard, “I’m just interested in them. I don’t want to take him, or find out how to summon one on my own so don’t worry,” he makes eye contact with Kei then, eyebrow raised, “I can hear you through him, since you’re connected.”

Kei scowls and makes sure to think some unsavory thoughts that make Kenma chuckle softly.

“So no one knows about him?” Bokuto’s soft question interrupts their silent exchange, and Kei looks up to find him watching Corvo with an intense gaze, eyes swimming with light yellow. 

“His magic is mood based, the brighter they are the stronger it is. He’s at his full strength when they’re gold,” Kenma wordlessly answers his long awaited question and chuckles again at Kei’s scowl.

_Get out of my head!_

‘ _Now Kei, don’t be sour. He’s giving me more attention than you ever have,_ ’ Corvo is shamelessly leaning into Kenma’s hand, making a soft sound that is scarily close to a purr. 

_Slut_ , Kei thinks harshly, coaxing a sharp bark of laughter from Kenma and a string of insulting names from the bird currently climbing into Kenma’s lap.

“I feel like we’re missing so much,” Bokuto is looking more and more confused as he watches the three interact, Akaashi and Kuroo not far behind.

“Sorry. This demon is actually a lust demon. He’s a shameless slut, and I tol-” Kei is cut off with a startled choking sound as his magic is yanked from him with an audible snap. It comes back a moment later, fading back in with an uncomfortable fizzing sensation. Kei scowls over at the bird, and tries really hard not to give into the urge to cut off the feeling of smugness radiating from the back of his mind.

“Fascinating. He can control your magic?” Kenma is now running soft fingers over Corvo’s upturned stomach, other arm wrapped securely around the small body.

“Not all the time,” Kei starts, reluctantly, “He’s needed to have a little more control than normal lately, with the… _incidents_ happening.”

The other men nod in understanding.

“Anyway, _does_ anyone else know?” Kenma reiterates Bokuto’s question from earlier, and Kei appreciates that he’s at least making an attempt not to simply pluck the answer from his head. 

“Just two people. My brother and my… coworker,” Kei hesitates over the word and he sees Kenma’s eyes widen as images of Suga and what they were doing the night before float to the front of his mind. It seems Kenma feels that he’s pried enough however, because he doesn’t comment on yet another illegal act Kei is involved with. 

“Well thanks for trusting us, even though we scared you. That means a lot,” Bokuto is looking at him so earnestly that Kei feels his heart clench in his chest in something other than fear. He wants so badly to reach out and touch that stupid face that he’s startled by it.

“You probably could, Koutarou wouldn’t mind,” much to Kei’s horror, Kenma says this in a disinterested tone, focus fully on the raven, “They’re in a polyamorous relationship, all three of them, and they like you.”

Kei almost short circuits, “ _What?_ ”

Akaashi and Bokuto both groan, Akaashi getting up and moving into the kitchen as Bokuto folds his arms onto the table and buries his face into them.

“Aw Kenma! You’re supposed to ease people into things like this! What the hell! At least wait until he’s not creeped out by me!” Kuroo, who has said nothing at all so far, and has just been looking forlornly at the table top, jumps up as he scolds his friend.

“Impossible, you’re just a creepy person,” Kenma replies without missing a beat, standing as well and moving into the living room, Corvo still in his arms.

Kei is still shocked, uncomprehending of what is going on around him, “Someone please elaborate that blunt statement, before I make my escape out the window.”

(‘ _He wouldn’t,_ ’ comes softly from the direction of the living room, followed by an even softer, “I know.”)

Bokuto is peeking at Kei over his folded arms, a bright red, dark blue and a dingy yellow all swirling together from the top of his irises. 

“What Kenma said wasn’t… untrue, though we weren’t going to spring it on you. Kuroo saw you on campus and hyped you up to us. When I saw you on the train I thought you were some kind of... enchantress!” this makes Kei scoff, “And then you were in the cafe and Akaashi told us about you all by himself. When we figured out we were all talking about the same guy, it was amazing! It was like fate!”

Bokuto has picked himself up by now and is leaning over Kei with waving arms again, entrapping the blond with his eyes and reeling him in with his words. Kei can tell he’s starting to blush, and feels it like a caress as Bokuto’s eyes snap to it. His eyes take on a pink sheen as light red slides in and the other colors that had taken up his irises slide out. 

“Koutarou!” Kenma snaps from the living room, and suddenly Kei is looking back into startled bright gold. 

“Sorry, Kou is intense,” Kuroo has finally started to move again, and he gently pushes Bokuto back into the chair he had leaped from, settling himself down in Akaashi’s vacated spot and leaning towards Kei as he speaks, “We _really_ didn’t mean to spring this on you, and we don’t need an answer right away, but we like you, we want to get to know you, even if you don’t want to date us we’d like to be your friends.”

Kei is saved from answering by a literal angel.

“Just keep it in mind. Deal with the weird stalker first, we’ll be here,” Akaashi says, sliding a hot chocolate onto the table in front of Kei and placing a gentle hand onto his shoulder. Kei is reminded of Suga’s support, with more of a soft feeling than Suga’s brand of tough love, but still all encompassing. 

Kei feels soft and gentle and he _hates_ it.

“No you don’t!” comes from the living room and Kei decides he hates _that_ even more.

Though, he does love hot chocolate. 

* * *

As soon as Kei was released from the clutches of people who actually wanted to _know_ him, he books it to someone who already knows him. 

He makes it to Yamaguchi’s apartment block in record time, undrenched from his own sweat by willpower alone. 

Yamaguchi isn’t expecting him, but he knows he’s always welcome, so he doesn’t think much of it when the other doesn’t answer his front door buzzer. He just slips in through the door when someone else is leaving the building, giving them a tight lipped smile as he passes.

He makes it up the stairs to Yamaguchi’s floor before he sees anyone else. When he steps onto the landing, there's a beautiful girl walking towards him that makes him pause. 

She seems shocked to see him, and recognition lights up her light grey eyes. Her mouth twists into… something, and it makes a beauty mark by her mouth jump. She quickly schools her expression and brushes past him, nodding as she starts down the stairs. 

He watches her over his shoulder until her head disappears down the stairs, wondering what the heck that was about. He doesn’t think he’s seen her before, and he tries to remember while he raps his knuckles quickly over Yamaguchi’s apartment door. 

“Did you forget something-” Yamaguchi is already speaking as he opens the door, but cuts himself off as he sees who's on the other side. Kei meets his gaze with a raised eyebrow, “Tsukki! I wasn’t expecting you! Is something wrong?”

Kei absently notes Yamaguchi's inherent fidgeting as he moves into the apartment.

“Hi, sorry I didn’t text but something wild happened and I needed to- Is that my sweater?” Kei cuts himself off in the middle of putting his stuff onto Yamaguchi’s living room floor, noticing a sweater he thought he’d lost back in the spring. Before Yamaguchi answers him, Kei is already talking again, “Never mind, I don’t care.”

He moves towards Yamaguchi and puts his hands on his friends shoulders.

“You are not going to believe what happened to me today.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I went back and changed a few narrative pieces in the first few chapters, literally just changing how i referred to one character... does that come up as an update?
> 
> thanks once again to my beta boi best boi who is the best.
> 
> y'all want me to stop worldbuilding now? 
> 
> i love you all! happy holidays! <3


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